Convicted Murderer Seeks Lesser Sentence in Prison Guard's Death

A western Pennsylvania man is seeking a reduced sentence in the shooting death of a jail guard more than two decades ago.

Forty-year-old Joseph Metts of Uniontown was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison in the 1992 shooting death of Piper Newland, a Fayette County prison guard.

He won a new trial but was convicted of second-degree murder in 2000 in the slaying, which occurred near the victim's home.
 
Metts was 17 years old at the time of the crime, and the U.S. Supreme Court has since ruled that life without parole sentences for juveniles are unconstitutional.
 
The (Uniontown) Herald-Standard reports that a Superior Court panel has sent the case back to county court, and Metts wants a judge to reconsider the life sentence.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
Contact Us